Injured searcher wants restitution from rescued hiker

May 22, 2013

Updated Aug. 21, 2013 1:17 p.m.

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Nick Papageorge's IV, 20, left, speaks during a news conference at Superior Court in Santa Ana on Wednesday morning as Orange County Supervisor Todd Spitzer, right, looks on. Papageorge's holds an image showing his spine after his surgery for his injuries from falling while helping search for hikers in April. MARK RIGHTMIRE, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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Orange County Supervisor Todd Spitzer, center, speaks in Superior Court in Santa Ana on Wednesday morning during the arraignment of Nicolas Cendoya, 19, far left, who stands with his attorney Paul Meyer. Spitzer spoke on behalf of Nick Papageorge's IV, 20, second from right, and his father, Nick Papageorge's III, both of Rancho Santa Margarita. MARK RIGHTMIRE, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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Nicolas Cendoya, one of two teenage hikers lost during a four-day search of the rugged terrain of eastern Orange County in April, appears for his arraignment in Superior Court in Santa Ana on Wednesday morning with his attorney Paul Meyer. He has been charged with drug possession after investigators found methamphetamine in his vehicle at the scene. His arraignment was postponed until July. MARK RIGHTMIRE, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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Nicolas Cendoya, one of two teenage hikers lost during a four-day search of the rugged terrain of eastern Orange County in April, appears for his arraignment in Superior Court with attorney Paul Meyer. MARK RIGHTMIRE, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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Deputy District Attorney Brock Zimmon speaks during the arraignment of Nicolas Cendoya, one of two teenage hikers rescued during a four-day search of the rugged terrain of eastern Orange County in April, in Superior Court in Santa Ana on Wednesday morning. Cendoya has been charged with drug possession after investigators found methamphetamine in his vehicle at the scene. The arraignment was postponed until July. MARK RIGHTMIRE, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

Nick Papageorge's III, center, of Rancho Santa Margarita, speaks during a news conference at Superior Court in Santa Ana on Wednesday morning as Orange County Supervisor Todd Spitzer, left, and Nick Papageorge's IV, 20, right, holds images showing his spine injuries. Spitzer spoke on behalf of Papageorge's during the arraignment of Nicolas Cendoya, to have the county assert Marsy's Law to compensate Papageorge's IV for his injuries. MARK RIGHTMIRE, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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An X-ray image shows the back of Nick Papageorge's IV, 20, of Rancho Santa Margarita. Papageorge's was injured, breaking his back, in a fall while helping in the search for Nicolas Cendoya and another teen. COURTESY PAPAGEORGE'S

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An X-ray image shows the back of Nick Papageorge's IV, 20, of Rancho Santa Margarita. Papageorge's was injured, breaking his back, in a fall while helping in the search for two missing teens. COURTESY PAPAGEORGE'S

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A photo shows the back of Nick Papageorge's IV, 20, of Rancho Santa Margarita after he was injured in a fall while searching for missing hikers. MARK RIGHTMIRE, COURTESY PAPAGEORGE'S

Nick Papageorge's IV, 20, left, speaks during a news conference at Superior Court in Santa Ana on Wednesday morning as Orange County Supervisor Todd Spitzer, right, looks on. Papageorge's holds an image showing his spine after his surgery for his injuries from falling while helping search for hikers in April.MARK RIGHTMIRE, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

SANTA ANA – Nick Papageorge's IV knew the instant he slammed into the ground after tumbling down a 110-foot cliff that he had broken his back.

Six weeks later, after several surgeries and more than $350,000 in medical expenses, Papageorge's walked into a Santa Ana courtroom Wednesday with two titanium rods and 11 metal screws in his back and stood side-by-side with one of the lost hikers he had been searching for when he fell in Holy Jim Canyon on April 3.

The hiker, Nicolas Cendoya, 19, was appearing before Superior Court Judge Gerald Johnston for arraignment on a charge of possession of methamphetamine. Orange County prosecutors contend that investigators discovered the illegal stimulant in his car while hundreds of people searched the steep Santiago Canyon area for four days for him and hiking companion Kyndall Jack.

Both were found alive – although dazed and dehydrated – after the massive, headline-making search by sheriff's deputies, firefighters and volunteers.

Cendoya's arraignment before Superior Court Judge Gerald Johnston was delayed until July 12 by agreement between his attorney, Paul S. Meyer, and Deputy District Attorney Brock Zimmon.

Cendoya's case could be resolved by diversion to a drug rehabilitation and treatment program, Zimmon said after the hearing.

VICTIMS RIGHTS

Papageorge's, 20, was in court with his father to assert his rights to get restitution for medical expenses under Marsy's Law, the victims bill of rights passed by California voters in 2008. He was represented by Todd Spitzer, a member of the Orange County Board of Supervisors, a former deputy district attorney and the former statewide chairman in the campaign to pass Proposition 9, which implemented Marsy's Law.

Spitzer said he was in court Wednesday not as a lawyer or a supervisor but as a family representative on behalf of the Papageorge's family to advise them on how to assert their Marsy's Law rights, including restitution.

Whether Papageorge's can recover restitution from Cendoya through Marcy's Law is a question that must be resolved in court. Spitzer said he believes there is a connection between illegal activity that Cendoya is alleged to have committed and the injuries Papageorge's suffered while searching for him.

But he also acknowledged that the first hurdle could be how Cendoya's criminal case plays out. If Cendoya is sent to drug diversion rather than before a jury, he would not be deemed a convicted person and therefore he could not be required to pay restitution under Marsy's Law.

Spitzer objected to drug diversion as a possible outcome of Cendoya's case, claiming that the portion of the law that does not allow for restitution is unconstitutional under Marsy's law.

LUCKY TO BE ALIVE

Meanwhile, Papageorge's of Rancho Santa Margarita talked to the media for the first time about his ordeal after he volunteered to help search for Cendoya and Jack. He said he was an experienced hiker, especially in Holy Jim Canyon.

"They needed help," he said. "They were lost."

Papageorge's said he was clinging to the side of a steep canyon wall near Lookout Point on what he described as a billy-goat trail on the afternoon of April 3 when the ground he was holding on to broke down, sending him plunging down the cliff. He said he bounced off the side of the canyon wall twice before he smashed into the ground.

The fall crushed one of his vertebrae, and he sat in excruciating pain for an hour before he was airlifted out of the canyon and taken to Mission Hospital in Mission Viejo for emergency surgery. He said he was in the hospital for days and begins physical therapy next week.

Papageorge's said that he would join the rescue effort again, even if he knew the lost hikers created their own problems by ingesting drugs.

"People made stupid decisions," he said. "Hopefully, this will set them on the straight and narrow."

Papageorge's said he expects to recover completely from his injuries and fulfill his dream of becoming a firefighter.

"It's a miracle that God spared me," he said, "I should have died in that fall."

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